Jillian at work For 10 months, I didn’t want to talk. When I did, I asked questions—lots of questions. I was better at note-taking and writing to myself than talking. As a daughter, wife and mother, I had different voices: “What time is your doctor appointment, Dad?” “How was your day, honey?” or “Did you get all your homework done?” I had never been an advocate in the sense I am today. In July 2012, at age 28, my daughter Jillian was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer, adenocarcinoma with metastases. For 10 months, I didn’t want to talk about...

Dianne & Shari Sussman, Breast Cancer in remission Wear To Now was conceptualized in honor of my late grandmother, Hada Bejar Garcia, who lost a two-year-long battle to stomach cancer on March 1, 2014. Growing up as the daughter of famous Spanish actors, she spent her childhood acting and greeted fame in her early teen years—beautiful and talented, many referred to her as the Cuban Marilyn Monroe. For many years, she enjoyed the lavish lifestyle that accompanies stardom. And though she lost her fortune at the start of the Cuban Revolution, she carried that element of glam with her throughout...

Carpe diem! Rejoice while you are alive; enjoy the day; live life to the fullest; make the most of what you have. It is later than you think. — Horace If you live in the contiguous 48, you know few things are as exciting as freshly fallen snow. I remember as a 4-year-old making my way downstairs from our North Seattle home to fetch Dad the morning paper. Upon opening the door that early December day, I was surprised by the precious little tufts of white floating down to their final destination. I immediately bolted back upstairs, tore into my...

Carol Preston interviews leukemia expert at ASCO 2015 Editor’s note: This blog originally appeared on the site of our partner, the Patient Empowerment Network. When my kids were little, I loved reading to them Arnold Lobel’s Frog and Toad books including “The Corner” in Frog and Toad All Year. In it, Frog assures Toad on a cold, rainy day that spring is just around the corner. Frog says that when he was younger, on a similar cold, rainy day, he searched for spring around many corners until he eventually found it—sunshine and flowers—around the corner of his house. And so it is with...

Dianne & Shari Sussman, Breast Cancer in remission Wear To Now was conceptualized in honor of my late grandmother, Hada Bejar Garcia, who lost a two-year-long battle to stomach cancer on March 1, 2014. Growing up as the daughter of famous Spanish actors, she spent her childhood acting and greeted fame in her early teen years—beautiful and talented, many referred to her as the Cuban Marilyn Monroe. For many years, she enjoyed the lavish lifestyle that accompanies stardom. And though she lost her fortune at the start of the Cuban Revolution, she carried that element of glam with her throughout...

ASCO 2015 Oral cancer therapies seem poised to revolutionize cancer care for many cancer types. More convenient, more effective, and often less toxic. But...they are quite expensive—in many cases, more than $100,000 a year per patient. And some experts have been discussing combining two drugs. Think of it, that's more than $200,000 per year. We must talk more about cost and not just echo the mantra of researchers who are “excited” about trial results. They are the first to admit they are not health economists. Surely, it is unbelievably good when people who were near death see their tumors melt...

There is nothing like the shock and confusion felt with the words, “I’m sorry, you have cancer.” However, with those words, my journey began. Following 48 hours of exams, tests and scans, I was diagnosed with non-advanced anal cancer. According to my medical team, my physical response to chemotherapy and radiation treatment was similar to that of other patients, but the sexual health side effects realized after treatment surprised them all. I was told on two separate occasions sexual dysfunction would not be an issue. Once I was cancer-free, that was unfortunately not the case. Talking with Doctors About Sexual...

Would you like an opportunity to ask a renowned CLL expert your question? Dr. Nicole Lamanna will be taking audience questions, as we broadcast live from the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting. Join us on Sunday, May 31st at 11 AM Central Time via Zoom, a free video conferencing service. You must register in advance to receive a link to the program and instructions for attending via Zoom. Once you join the conference, you will be able to send your questions to us in real time via the Q&A window. If you can't attend at the time above, or want to send...